UFC Sacramento live blog: Anthony Hernandez vs. Gregory Rodrigues

This is the UFC Sacramento live blog for Anthony Hernandez vs. Gregory Rodrigues, the middleweight main event Saturday at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, Calif.

Hernandez is currently tied with Caio Borralho for the No. 5 spot at 185 pounds in the MMA Fighting Global Rankings, while Rodrigues looks to rise from his No. 15 position

California’s Hernandez (15-3, 1 NC) looks to bounce back from a disappointing loss to Sean Strickland that not only snapped an eight-fight win streak, it probably cost him a title shot. “Fluffy” has made a habit of overwhelming the competition, scoring finishes against Roman Dolidze, Michel Pereira, Roman Kopylov, Edmen Shahbazyan, and Rodolfo Vieiera. An impressive performance Saturday places Hernandez back in the thick of the championship chase.

Rodrigues (19-6) is set to make a statement himself after winning his past three fights and six of his past seven. In his most recent outing, Rodrigues avenged one his few losses with a stunning first-round knockout of Brunno Ferreira. Though he was best known for his grappling exploits prior to signing with the UFC in 2021, “Robocop” has become one of the middleweight division’s most respected knockout artists, with seven of his octagon victories coming by way of KO/TKO.

Check out the UFC Sacramento live blog for Anthony Hernandez vs. Gregory Rodrigues below.

Preamble

Love this matchup for the Sacramento fans, who get to cheer on Anthony Hernandez, a native of Dunnigan just 40 miles up from Sac Town. Intriguing clash of styles, too, genuinely not confident either way that Hernandez can overwhelm Rodrigues with pressure before Rodrigues catches him with some blistering body shots and ends his night early.

Let’s rock.

Always tell me the odds

Hernandez still has a lot of backers as he enters the main event as a -215 favorite, per FanDuel. Rodrigues the underdog at +180.

Round 1

Referee Herb Dean oversees the main event.

Hernandez immediately goes for a takedown and pushes Rodrigues to the fence. Here we go. Rodrigues struggling to do anything with this position, Hernandez giving him no room to breathe. He changes levels and attacks a single leg, but Rodrigues’ defense holds. They briefly separate before Hernandez goes right back in for another takedown. Classic wall-and-stall going on here.

Rodrigues finally gets some space and lands a jab. Honestly, the most meaningful damage of the fight. Hernandez tries to force another takedown but eats a right hand for his troubles. Those punches might be enough for Rodrigues to take the round. Hernandez with an overhand right and he ducks in for a takedown, but Rodrigues has him scouted. Hernandez cut Rodrigues with an elbow, but eats a knee to the body as he tries to get in. Rodrigues with a counter shot to the body. I’m not sold on Hernandez’s tactics here.

MMA Fighting scores the round 10-9, Rodrigues.